Tips for entering online competitions

Online competitions can be a serious business for some people, in fact, there’s a whole community out there of professional ‘compers’ who focus on entering many competitions in order to increase their chances of winning.

Maybe you enter an odd competition every now and then, or maybe you’re hoping to increase your chances and are simply looking for tips, well, you’re in the right place!

Let’s explore some ways you can enter competitions and how you could increase your chances of winning. 

Check in regularly 

There are some websites that collate different competitions across the web, and allow you to browse and enter them all from one place. A great tip is to bookmark your favorite sites so you can easily and quickly check back to enter. Maybe you’ve got a specific prize in mind, or there’s something you’ve seen you would really like to win, a key part of entering competitions is to check back regularly and enter as often as you can. Competition providers will often renew their competitions daily, weekly, or monthly. Best of the Best is a prime example, offering a car giveaway every week! They’ve been around for years and started their journey by offering car prizes in UK airports. 

Make the extra effort

Some prizes require a bit of extra effort in order to be won, for example, require a short story to be written or a video entry. Obviously, it depends if the prize is worth it to you, but, if it is, this is where you should put your thinking cap on. A great tip is to check out previous winners and to take some inspiration from their entries, this can give you an idea as to the level of quality you will need to achieve in order to be in for a chance of winning.

Competitions that require entrants to put in that bit more effort generally receive fewer entries, so your chance of winning is already higher. If you then put in as much effort as you can to make your entry stand out, you’re more likely to catch the attention of those picking a winner. 

Check social media

You might be surprised to see how many competitions live on social media. Instagram is a great example, and influencers and small businesses often run small giveaways which are pretty easy to enter. It usually requires you ‘like’ a post and follow the account/s involved. A great tactic here is to create social media accounts solely for the use of entering competitions, this way you are able to keep some separation from your personal socials and any irrelevant content you might encounter following competition entries. Facebook and Twitter are also home to competitions waiting to be won. Simply search ‘competition’ to then be served an array of potential prizes. 

Check site legitimacy 

This one might sound a bit obvious, but it’s really important to check that the competition provider you’re engaging with is legitimate. Competitions should never ask you to pay a fee to enter nor should they request your bank details. Equally, there are some data farmers out there that operate under the guise of a competition provider but their main goal is to get your data to then sell on to third parties. A great way to avoid scams like this is to check previous user reviews and make sure the competition has terms and conditions available. 

Stay one step ahead

As most competitions, these days are found online, and quick way of speeding up your entries is to ensure your auto-fill on Google forms is up to date. This will allow you to quickly fill out entry forms with ease, and get more entries done in one go. It’s pretty standard for competition providers to request your details such as an email address or a phone number, so having these ready to go will save you typing them out, especially if you’re entering multiple competitions. Make sure you enter these correctly and your details are up to date, as if you win it will be through one of these methods that you would be contacted. A simple but effective tip!

Don’t forget radio!

Radio competitions can often get overlooked, especially if you don’t usually listen to the radio. But they shouldn’t be shunned, listening to a radio station in the morning or on your way home from work can make your world of comping a whole lot broader, with radio stations often giving away everything from televisions to holidays. If you’re not keen on listening to them, you can also check out radio stations’ websites – they will most likely have a ‘competition’ section where you can enter online.

Entering competitions can really pay off if you stick with it and cast a wide net across the web. We hope that these tips will make entering competitions that little bit easier, and remember, it’s more often than not down to the luck of the draw. We wish you luck, and happy comping!